Tuesday, December 29, 2015

Over the Christmas holiday I had a chance to get together with some old gaming friends and the subject of the disastrous "Masks of Nyarlathotep" prop set came up. Just out of curiosity, has anyone actually run the numbers for the project? As in taken a crack at figuring out just how much it would have cost to do everything that was promised? I've Googled around a bit, but couldn't find anything along those lines.

I know that of the $74,000 total 8%, $5920, went to Kickstarter and Amazon for their fees. An additional .20 is charged for each pledge. With 507 backers that's $101. The total loss to processing is $6021. That leaves $67,979.

Casually comparing the packages that were promised with what it would cost to print those items, as well as ship them from the printers, seems to show there was going to be trouble from the start. From personal experience I can say that print shipping charges can be a huge hidden expense. All those nifty little items have to be packed in reinforced cardboard printer's boxes to prevent damage, and that extra weight adds up fast.

Another thing working against the project was the number of backers. 500 is one of the break points for most discount printers, with 1000 the next tier. With 500 backers you have to make allowances for losses and damage, forcing you to go with 1000.

Two of the extras caught my eye as being unrealistic to produce. The "Fog Spawn Larvae" would have been a huge undertaking, requiring a major effort for a garage caster. The custom slides would also have been a huge expense.

The more I look at it the more it appears Mr. Patey was caught in a trap of promising too much without taking into account actual production costs and the ever escalating shipping cost of all those goodies.

Saturday, December 26, 2015

An upgraded version of the Penhew Foundation business card from Chaosium's "Masks of Nyarlathotep". Right click and "Open Link in New Tab" to download the full sized version, print on cardstock, and trim to size following the cropping guides.

Friday, December 25, 2015

Elsbeth Lair brings us this well done video on various bottle aging techniques. It covers scoring the glass with sandpaper, translucent wear washes, using paint to age corks, and corroding metal hardware with vinegar and salt.

Wednesday, December 23, 2015

Fox Henderson brings us this nifty tribal Cthulhu. One of the glorious things about the Mythos is how syncretic it is. Not matter what the culture or where in the world you are there are Cthulhu worshippers nearby.

A year ago I was browsing the Steam Winter Sale and found "Fallout: New Vegas" on sale for the price of a cup of coffee.

As you may have noticed, that was the beginning of my obsession with the post-apocalyptic Mojave. It's easily one of the best games I've ever played, with strong storytelling, compelling characters, biting humor, and well thought out world building. If you want to see why I love it so much now's the time- it's on sale once again. The base game is just $2.49, while the deluxe package with every DLC package is $6.79. I'd strongly suggest getting the deluxe package. The additional content adds a huge amount of material to the game.

Tuesday, December 22, 2015

$74,000. That's how much money was pledged during last year's incredibly successful Kickstarter for the "Masks of Nyarlathotep" prop set. Ben Patey was the artist behind the project, which featured upgraded props for Chaosium's classic pen and paper RPG adventure.

After months of silence from Mr. Patey it's become obvious that the project has imploded in truly epic fashion. If you read some of the extensive comments on the Kickstarter page you'll see hundreds of very upset supporters, some of them out hundreds of dollars.

I have no idea what happened, but I'd like to apologize for my small part in this fiasco. Mr. Patey advertised the Kickstarter here and I was an enthusiastic supporter of what appeared to be a dream project. A collection of dozens of high end props in support of a Call of Cthulhu classic? Page after page of documents, maps, and photographs? Incredibly well done physical props? This is exactly the kind of thing Propnomicon has always been about. Sadly, it turned into a massive cluster****.

I'm at a loss for how this happened. In all my communication with Mr. Patey he was extremely professional and enthusiastic. Every prop had already been designed and prototyped, all the documents were ready for printing, and independent artists were already lined up to produce the physical items.

The only possible explanation I can think of is that the Kickstarter was too successful and Mr. Patey was overwhelmed. I can imagine it was pretty daunting when the fund drive ended and he found himself responsible for over 500 premium packets for sponsors around the world. That said, his failure to follow through is unforgivable.

I think there's a lesson here. Time and time again we've seen overly ambitious Mythos-related projects melt down. Whenever you see one with dozens of custom items, seemingly endless pledge options, and too good to be true shipping charges, be wary.

Burn, baby, burn. Magpie Bones brings us this nifty LARP safe fire effect. The flames are shaped organza or tulle around an LED core. It's amazing how LED and battery technology have made portable lighting effects like this so easy and effective.

Thursday, December 17, 2015

Mike Jenkins has a great series of posts looking at the props created by author James Gurney for his "Dinotopia" series.

The frame for these books are the ‘found’ 19th century journals of
shipwreck survivor Arthur Denison and his son. Gurney mocked-up the
first journal, though whether this was simply for himself or for
inspiration or as a model for an illustration I don’t know:

That initial mockup would eventually be developed into a full prop version.

I was surprised to learn I actually have at least one Dinotopia prop. Mr. Gurney based the "sunstones" that power the technology of his world...

Sunday, December 13, 2015

Louis Wu is the protagonist of Larry Niven's "Ringworld" novels and...a few other stories. To say more would spoil some of the increasingly complicated internal history of his Known Space books. This take on a vac suited Wu comes to us from Slawek Narwid. I think Louis would go for the more technicolor look of a Belter-style suit, but he absolutely nailed his physical appearance.

I've received a goodly amount of feedback about not shipping anything I currently have on Ebay outside of the United States and Canada. And by "feedback" I mean a lot of folks don't like it. All of those comments and emails, without exception, have been unfailingly polite. That's something I really appreciate.

What it really comes down to is dealing with the outrageous shipping, customs hassles, and potential VAT levies of the EU. Half of my audience for Mythos and horror-related props resides there. Believe me, I hate cutting everyone in Europe off, but I don't think there's another alternative. In the past I've been more than willing to deal with shipping and customs problems, but I'm extremely leery of the VAT rules.

As I understand it, and I welcome correction, I'm responsible for filling out an accurate customs declaration for any packages mailed to the EU. That's not a problem. The receiver is then responsible for paying any duties and/or VAT based on the declared value of the goods. That varies based on their country of residence. Here's where the issue arises. Those fees can add up quickly, and if the recipient doesn't pay the item is sent to impound. To both Ebay and Paypal that counts as non-delivery and entitles the purchaser to a full refund.

That's...less than optimal, particularly for the OOAK or short-run items I do.

Saturday, December 12, 2015

Artist Jacob Petersson brings us the mummified remains of four house gnomes. The unfortunate fae reportedly turned against their homeowner and had to be put down by a witch. It wasn't until 1960 that their bodies were discovered in the back room of a Stockholm tobacconist.

Friday, December 11, 2015

Earlier this spring, the museum security patrol surprised an intruder
in the basement storage area. A number of large crates had been opened
but the thief fled empty handed. The broken crates were all from a
shipment from Nairobi dated 1893. Shattered pots, masks and ancient
weapons lay scattered across the floor. The items were collected,
assessed, cataloged and put back into storage. Of the many invaluable
artifacts and cultural fetishes, one item stood out from the rest.

It was a statue depicting Cthulhu. The overwhelming stylization of
various African cultures fixed its origin and created a mystery to the
presence of this Polynesian demigod on the African continent. Obviously,
a connection between cultures, unknown and unexplored. Initial
assessment of the item describes a deity artifact, approximately seven
inches high, four inches deep, and nearly 12 pounds in weight. Created
from a lump of raw iron and wire, it is riven by twenty two old nails.
Age of the figure has not been determined though the nails are common
construction items from the late eighteenth century. I found the piece
to be a truly brutish vision and repellent to the touch.

Mr. Sardinha has done an outstanding job of interpreting the Mythos through the lens of African tribal traditions. On its own this is a fantastic piece, but it would make an killer prop for anyone running Chaosium's "Masks of Nyarlathotep".

I've tossed some more swag up on Ebay you may be interested in. Offerings include a few of the patches and pins that have been unavailable for a while.

Update: Unfortunately, if you live outside North America the listings won't appear. Believe me, I wish that wasn't necessary, but the hassles of VAT and customs just aren't worth dealing with. I had a nightmarish experience on a private commission for a vampire heart and never, ever want to deal with the EU's customs agents again.

Tuesday, December 8, 2015

The Cthulhu Project returns to our pages with their latest Kickstarter effort. In addition to their already successful Lovecraftian card game "The Writer" they're offering up a very nice premium- copies of a Cthulhu idol sculpted by Marty of Monster Box.

The card game is a series completion variant where up to eight players vie to be the first to put together their own collection of Mythos stories.

One of the biggest issues that repeatedly comes up with Mythos Kickstarters is shipping. It can be an absolute killer, particularly when you're not really sure just how much it's going to add to your pledge. Thankfully, the Cthulhu Project has avoided that by offering flat rates to both the EU and US.

Their are ten days left in the campaign and it's already hit it's funding target. New stretch goals are likely to make it an even more attractive project.

Saturday, December 5, 2015

Much to everyone's surprise, the Fallout 4 - Pip-Boy Edition is back in stock at Amazon for every system, PS4, XBone, and PC. I have to admit to a certain schadenfreude watching the prices on Ebay collapse as the scalpers desperately try to unload their stock.

That said, I really wish Bethesda would release both the Pip-Boy and the case separately. They're fun little props, but I just can't bring myself to buy another copy of the game to get my hands on them. I'm also...horrors...a bit disappointed in "Fallout 4". I fell in love with "Fallout: New Vegas" because of the strong story, characters, and, most importantly, the worldbuilding. Ultimately, very little of the main plot in "Fallout 4" makes any sense. They spent years iterating concept artwork to create a world that looked unique and believable, and it looks great. Sadly, Bethesda didn't spend nearly enough time conceptualizing the world itself. I'm still holding out hope that next year's DLC can salvage the game, much as "Broken Steel" fixed the bizarre storyline of "Fallout 3".

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What's All This?

Propnomicon focuses on horror and fantasy props of interest to fans of H. P. Lovecraft and players of the "Call of Cthulhu" role playing game. That includes items directly inspired by Lovecraft's writing, DIY information for creating your own works, printable paper props, and source materials related to the 1920's and 30's, the "classic era" of the Cthulhu Mythos. Beyond that, the proprietor of the blog also enjoys pulp action stories, classic supernatural horror, mad science, and the occasional foray into more modern interpretations of the Mythos.

Propnomicon is an Amazon affiliate site. That means any purchases you make from an Amazon link published here result in a small commission. It doesn't cost you anything, and helps defray the cost of the goofy stuff I buy on Amazon.